Hotel Experience

There are few things better in life than the surroundings of a luxury hotel room – relaxing in supreme comfort during the day and sleeping in the lap of luxury at night. Would it not be great if you could enjoy the same experience at home, every day? Well, there is nothing stopping you. All that’s required are some choice lavish extras and you will never have to worry about packing your bags for a night of indulgence again.

At the heart of every 5-star hotel room is a great bed. It has to be comfortable and it has to be positioned properly.

Ideally, once you climb between the sheets you will never want to leave, so you are going to have to go plush. This does not mean going out and spending thousands of pounds on a new mattress but you will need to be prepared to invest in some pretty fancy bedding. Nothing gets the job done quite like Egyptian cotton bedding, this will have you sleeping like a baby for years. All genuine Egyptian cotton sheets are decadently soft, but you will be best served by a high thread count – 400 is a good place to start; 1000 thread will blow your mind.

A good pillow is next on the list. The softness will be down to your personal preferences, but, again, a high thread count is a must. In many of the best hotels around the world including The Benjamin in NYC they have a 'pillow menu' which you may want to consider replicating in your own home.

Add a layer of warmth and style with a luxury bedspread and complete with an overload of luxurious pillows in a range of velvets and silks.

Now that you have transformed your bed into something the Ritz Carlton would be proud off, it is time to consider the positioning. After a great night’s sleep, you want to wake up feeling relaxed and happy. If you are a morning person, face your bed towards a window. If you are more the nocturnal sort, placing your bed against an accent wall will keep you away from the light.

A hotel bedroom is a place free of the stresses and worries of everyday life, so to recreate this you might need to think about changing the colour scheme of your room. Soothing neutral colours such as light grey, beige and cream are best, with added colour coming from some well-placed accent items such as lamps, chairs, throws and pillows.

Multiple sources of light are also important – control the light and control the mood. A dimmer switch should be installed for overhead lighting, while bedside lamps can be used for tasks such as reading. For an ambient, even glow, consider recessed lighting.

While Egyptian sheets will make you feel like you are floating on a sea of silk, on occasion you may prefer to relax in a seating area. Investing in a cosy chair is the way to go; however, not everyone will have enough space so a chaise lounge is a great alternative.

One of the biggest differences between your bedroom and a hotel room is the lack of clothes lying around on the floor, magazines crammed into the bedside draw, and make-up spread across the dresser. Every item in a hotel room has been chosen because it needs to be there. You can recreate this by de-cluttering.

Decide what items can be kept elsewhere and give everything its place. The less needless extras you have, the more relaxed your room is going to feel. De-cluttering does not just mean freeing up floor space either; wall decor should be limited to just a few simple photographs or a piece of artwork.

A bedroom can be the most beautifully decorated place in the world but, if it smells bad, you might as well sleep in the doghouse. Open the windows of your room routinely to bring in a cycle of fresh air and keep things smelling nice with fresh flowers and incense. As an extra special treat for when you go to bed at night, add a couple of drops of lavender oil to pillows.

The best hotel rooms always feature an array of little perks that make you want to pack up your belongings and move in permanently. The great thing about creating this experience in your bedroom is that you are not limited as to how many of these extras you can treat yourself to.

Start with a luxury bathrobe and some flip-flop slippers – you will spend more time in these than your clothes. Indulge in some of your favourite toiletries, speciality lotions and light a few candles around the room and the en-suite (if you are lucky enough to have one). Finally, pop a few mints on your pillow and revel in the tranquillity and peacefulness of your new surroundings.